erhu

er·hu
E1R1H4U1
/ˈɜːhuː//ɚˈhuː/

noun

A type of bowed spike fiddle having two strings, originating in China as part of the huqin family of string instruments.

RareScrabble 7

Meanings

nounerhu (plural erhu or erhus)

plural erhus · alternative erh hu · alternative erh-hu · alternative urheen

  1. A type of bowed spike fiddle having two strings, originating in China as part of the huqin family of string instruments.

    Searches on Craigslist turned up no ads for erhus, wanted or offered, though there was a posting for an instrument found on the Lower East Side (the owner must identify the instrument).

    2009 March 10, Jennifer 8. Lee, “Cherished Instrument Is Gone, and to Its Owner, Loss Is Like a Death”, in New York Times
    2 more examples

    A rugged, handsome woman who can plant five fields in the time it takes others to plant one, Lu reveals her inner self by playing sweet music on the ehru ^([sic]) in a deserted factory site.

    1994 October, Andrea Freud Loewenstein, “No More Happy Endings”, in Gay Community News, page 28

    At Kurban’s school, traditional Chinese culture is woven into every aspect of campus life. [...] Two to four times a week, they [the students] attend classes in music and art, mastering instruments like the erhu, or two-stringed fiddle, singing Peking Opera and painting in traditional Chinese styles.

    2026 March 12, Li Qing, “A Vision Takes Root”, in Beijing Review, volume 69, number 11, via EBSCOhost, →ISSN, pages 26-27

Synonyms & antonyms

Origin

  1. Mandarin二胡
  2. Englisherhu

From Mandarin 二胡 (èrhú), from 二 (èr, “two”) + 胡 (hú, “fiddle; short for 胡琴, a family of Chinese vertical fiddles”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan erhu
  • erhuChinese fiddle
Chinese Cantonese 二胡
  • 二胡Chinese fiddle
Chinese Mandarin 二胡, 南胡
  • 二胡 (èrhú)Chinese fiddle
  • 南胡 (nánhú)Chinese fiddle
  • 二弦 (èrxián)Chinese fiddle
Esperanto erhuo, nanhuo
  • erhuoChinese fiddle
  • nanhuoChinese fiddle
French erhu
  • erhuChinese fiddle
Japanese 二胡
  • 二胡 (niko)Chinese fiddle
Korean 얼후, 이호
  • 얼후 (eolhu)Chinese fiddle
  • 이호 (iho)Chinese fiddle
Polish erhu
  • erhuChinese fiddle
Russian эрху́
  • эрху́ (erxú)Chinese fiddle
Swedish erhu
  • erhuChinese fiddle
Vietnamese nhị hồ
  • nhị hồChinese fiddle

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

erhu. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/erhu

MLA

“erhu.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/erhu. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “erhu,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/erhu.

Source: erhu on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.